Spain requires online gambling operators to match account and payment ownership
Regulation2 min read
In brief
- Spain requires state-wide online gambling operators to verify that account holders own their payment methods from 28 October.
- Operators and registered players have until 28 April 2027 to adapt under a six-month transitional period.
- During the transition, users may deposit and play but cannot withdraw winnings until ownership is verified.
- Veridas is promoting video identification, saying its process meets SEPBLAC's general requirements.
Online gambling operators licensed at national level in Spain must from 28 October verify that the holder of a gambling account is also the holder of the payment methods used for deposits and withdrawals, under Article 21 of the anti-money-laundering regulation as amended by Royal Decree 813/2026. The requirement applies to operators of state-wide scope, according to the report.
The rules set out several ways to establish identity in non-face-to-face relationships, including electronic signature, documentation issued by a public official, a first deposit from the customer's own bank account and other secure procedures meeting the minimum requirements in SEPBLAC's general authorisations. Video identification falls within that last category.
A six-month transitional period runs until 28 April 2027 for operators and already registered players to adapt their systems and payment methods. During that period users may continue to deposit funds and take part in games, but cannot withdraw winnings until matching ownership has been verified.
Veridas is promoting its video-identification solution in this context. The company says the process combines capture of the identity document, a biometric check with liveness detection, a recording of the holder showing the document and automatic validation, followed by review by a specialised agent.
According to Veridas, the procedure has an independent legal report and a technical conformity assessment from DEKRA. The company says its technology meets SEPBLAC's general requirements and cites its experience developing identity-verification solutions for various sectors, including gambling; it says the offering is intended to help operators adapt their identification and control processes.
The next regulatory reference is the European anti-money-laundering regulation (AMLR), whose direct application is scheduled for 10 July 2027. Operators therefore face an adaptation period in which they must review their identification procedures, user verification and control of payment methods.